The Beauty of Simplicity
by miss infinite
Summary: Love tends to take hold of us at the most unfortunate of times and places. KristElsa.
1. The Most Important Meal of The Day

**A/N: **_Greetings!_

_Yes, I know I said I was gonna write a Jelsa-fic, but KristElsa is just __so__... __**yes**__. I intend for this to be a significantly longer story than __**Love at First Dance **__and probably hopefully surely a little more maturely written, since it's mostly from Elsa's point of view. Takes place after Frozen aaand... rated T may magically become rated M._

**_Enjoy, read and review!_**

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[1]

Elsa had been rather stunned when her sister had brought to the light that Kristoff Bjorgman - the _ice-_master and deliverer of Arendelle, was in reality her new suitor. The man was certainly decent enough, from what Elsa had witnessed, but she hardly knew him, and she would hate having to mention to her sister again what had occured the previous time she'd moved too quick forward with opposite sex.

"But it's true love," Anna had claimed, and on the spot, Elsa had given up.

"Very well," she'd sighed. "But please, do take it more gradually this time. Can you promise me that? I do not want you getting hurt." Elsa had been more than tempted to say '_again_', but since they were in the middle of working Hans out of their lives, she supposed it was no good idea.

It had been several months since the incident, and the inhabitants of Arendelle were still striving to get used to Elsa's... gift. But sadly, when she and Anna took afternoon strolls through the village, Elsa from time to time overheard 'Snow Queen' being mumbled behind her back. Sure, it irritated her, but she had learned over a period of time that it was nothing more than a cold fact.

Still, sometimes, Elsa turned around to glare at the ones whispering, other times, she just simply kept a straight expression and smoothly fooled them into believing that she did not take notice in what they were speaking about.

'_There is no point in igniting pointless fights,' _her father had once shared with her. That was the main reason she usually attempted to pull away from potential arguments. Because arguments led her into getting upset and getting upset made her feelings spill, which could quickly turn out dangerous. For her, that was.

At least it used to be that way. Elsa was unsure if she would lose grip of the control of her powers if she ever happened to become enraged someday. But she did not intend to try and see.

"Is - uh, Anna here? Your _Highness_?"

Elsa was abruptly torn back to the bitter reality by Kristoff's deep voice, at the other side of the breakfast room. He was standing by the door. Elsa herself sat at the chair by the long, wooden table, recalling that she was supposed to be eating.

"She is still asleep," Elsa informed Kristoff, after clearing her throat for morning hoarseness.

"Oh." Kristoff rubbed his thick, muscular neck. "Do you... mind if I - uh, wait? Here? I mean - may I wait for her here?"

"Certainly." Elsa made an effort, which was most likely obvious to sound as friendly as possible. She did have a reputation for being withdrawn, and that she was determined to disprove. "You may sit down too, if you'd like," she added, performing a somewhat welcoming gesture towards the chair on the other side of the table.

Kristoff swallowed, and did as he was told. But he was a big man, and had obvious difficulties placing his arms, which were long, solid and bulging with muscles under his thick clothing. "Thanks," he muttered. "Your - Your _Highness_."

Elsa and Kristoff had never truly spoken, so it was nothing more than highly predictable that this would be a bit uncomfortable for them both.

"Please, call me Elsa."

Elsa's attention was drawn to how longingly Kristoff stared at the huge plates of food, and softly added: "Have a taste. I'm not feeling ravenous today."

As soon as he catched this, Kristoff shoved at least four _skiver med brunost down_ his throat and drank so much milk it practically ran straight out of his mouth again.

Unwillingly, and despite herself, Elsa giggled and lightly covered her mouth with her hand. "You must be hungry."

Kristoff stiffened, his eyes expanding into big, chocolate brown circles. He was in the middle of swallowing the last piece of fresh bread there had been on the table, and looked so guilty it was almost comical. Elsa had to chuckle once more.

"Sow-ry," Kristoff said, his mouth still full.

"It's fully approved," Elsa joked, beaming at him. "It's a relief, actually, to finally have a big eater in the castle. No offense."

"Nown tay-kin." Kristoff stuffed a petite cake into his mouth. "But - uh, don't you eat a lot? I mean - uh, not that you're _big_, uh, but... you have such... a strong and... And _healthy body_! Not that I've _seen_ your body. Or... that I _want to see_ your body. Not - not that I don't _like_ your body, your body's great, I mean..." Redness was flaring up in his face now, and he cursed heavily under his breath.

"I do eat," Elsa replied simply, struggling to decide if she would laugh at his sweet awkwardness, or become upset that he'd sworn in front of a queen, "only more satisfying portions when I'm by myself. I'm not very comfortable eating in front of people."

Kristoff groaned. "So I'm pretty much starving you by just being here."

Elsa looked at him, amused. "No, not at all. I told you, I'm not hungry."

He gave a short nod, and lifted his quite massive hand to scratch the dirty blonde hairlocks on the back of his head. "So, will Anna be down soon, or...?"

"I believe she will. Where are you two thinking of going today?"

"We're going to see my family. The... trolls."

"I'm positive Anna looks very much forward to that."

The corner of Kristoff's mouth twitched, and he let his arm fall into his lap. "Yeah."

Elsa glanced at her hands.

"Kristoff," she slowly began. He blinked, flinching a little, as if he found it startling in a way, hearing her say his name. Elsa had to admit that she too felt a bit strange about it, but did not grant it any more thought before continuing. "As we're speaking of my sister... I never thanked you - not truly - for rescuing Anna. You brought her back home when her heart froze. Because of my powers. It was courageous and I'm highly grateful."

For a long time, Kristoff sat there, stiff. He didn't answer at first, but did open his mouth a couple of times, as if he was about to say something, but decided not to. At last, he spoke: "Uh... you're - you're welcome. But you saved her too, you know."

"Barely," Elsa whispered, her gaze abruptly dropping again.

Kristoff once again seemed unsure of what to say. "What matters is... that you did," he murmured. He grabbed another cake and put it in his mouth. "By the way, how exactly did you thaw - "

He was interrupted by the door, flying open and revealing a grinning redhead with a hail of tiny freckles on her nose. Anna was - as usual - in her dark green bunad and long carrot colored braids. "I'm ready!" she cheered, storming over to Kristoff and smooching his cheek, leaving a light red lipstick-mark on the fair skin.

"Morning, Elsa. Let's go, Kris!" She yanked the mountain man out of his chair.

_Kris_?

"Anna, I think you should have breakfast before leaving," Elsa suggested, still a little bewildered by the way she'd bursted into the room.

"Oh, forget about the breakfast. We're going to see Pabbie and the others today!"

"Yeah, I told her," Kristoff said.

"Great. We're leaving now! See you in a couple of hours, Elsa!" Anna pulled Kristoff towards the door. "Come on, Pabbie's waiting!"

"I'll - Uh, I'll see you later, Elsa - I mean - Queen. Your Highness." Kristoff smiled sweetly as he and Anna disappeared out the door.

Elsa, who'd rosen from her chair, fell back with a quiet 'thump'.

"Well," she sighed, feeling a remarkable emptiness as the door shut, and silence fell. "At least now I can eat," she dryly mumbled to herself, feeling cold, numb and left behind.


	2. Chestnut Brown Eyes

**A/N: **_Hiya! 'Herr' means 'mister' in Norwegian, 'pappa' is 'father' and 'min Herre' means 'my Lord'._

_I'm so very sorry if this chapter seems rushed in any ways. But I promise, I'm not one of those 'boy-sees-girl-talks-to-her-for-five-minutes-then-ditches-his-girlfriend-just-to-be-with-the-other-one'-writers. Thanks._

**_Read and review!_**

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[2]

When Elsa was little, her pappa - King Agnar - had presented her with a book. A book of fairytales for her to read and learn from. And that book held a fable about a swan. This swan was beautifully delicate, and blissful, with feathers as soft and white as an angel's wings, always happily playing with her friends and family, and was highly respected among her common species.

But one day, the swan discovered a long and pitch black feather beneath her left wing. She was terrorized, and fiercely tried to keep it unknown for the rest of the swans. She was certain to be punished if they were to find out that she was different from them. The swan prayed for it to vanish, but still, the dark feathers continued to grow, expanding under her wings, and in the end, it became futile for her to even attempt suppressing it for any longer. When the others exposed her secret, they blindly feared and cast out the black swan, purely driven by horror.

The swan escaped from home, but in the end, she learned to accept the dark feathers, to cherish and appreciate them, and she came back. Elsa found it quite amazing how strikingly similar the story was to hers and had compared her own situation countless times to it. It soothed her, in a way. There was a small delight in feeling connected to something so lovely and precious. Something once as isolated as her.

She tried, she tried, but it was impossible to stop thinking of it.

Her very _own _soldiers, her own _people_, had turned against her without thinking twice. Though, of course Elsa understood why. They had been frightened by the unknown. But still...

Elsa closed the book for a moment, and took a deep breath.

_I am not allowed to feel this way, _Elsa irritably thought to herself. _Anna has returned to my life. Our relationship is salvaged. __**I'm**__ salvaged. Healed -_

Once again, her gloomy, inner monologue was simply cut short by a male voice, far, far away. Elsa blinked in surprise, and lifted her gaze to meet his round, chestnut brown eyes.

Kristoff.

"Greetings," he uttered tonelessly. "How're you doin'?"

_What happened to 'your Highness'? _Elsa thought. At least his shoulders seemed a bit looser than the last time he'd paid her a visit.

"She's still asleep," she said quickly, her eyelids still fluttering slightly from the sudden interruption. "Anna, I mean."

Kristoff opened his mouth, about to speak, but Elsa was already one step ahead of him.

"Yes, please do." She quietly nodded towards the timbered chair.

Elsa wasn't having breakfast. She'd skipped that. In her hands, she was holding the fable book. She'd been in the middle of reading when Kristoff had entered the room. "How did it go yesterday?"

Kristoff sat down, pulled off his hat and mittens and put them carelessly on the table surface. Elsa could not help but look at his hands, which were notably large and rough, no doubt from all the ice harvesting.

"Went fine," Kristoff replied, clearly more comfortable than he'd been the day before. "My family were as extreme as ever."

Elsa giggled. "What did they do?"

"For starters; planning our wedding, discussing with Anna how many kids we're having. Nothing new," he said, chuckling when thinking of it. "They also made us a personal song. Would love to sing it to you, but... Pretty coarse lyrics."

"You can save the song," Elsa said. "But I would like to know when and if you and my sister will get married. To plan the ceremony."

Kristoff's eyes widened. "M-Married? Uh... Haven't really thought much of it."

Elsa arched an eyebrow and her mouth turned into a straight line. "You're courting her. Why would you not think about marriage?"

"Well, I need to figure out if I wanna spend the rest of my life with her first, don't I?" he sharply replied. "And... there's - there's no rush, either."

She supposed he was right, but ever since she was very young, her pappa had told her that it was important for the 'people outside' to marry at an early age, given that it led to strong, robust and healthy heirs. "No, certainly not," Elsa sighed. "But since you are both so largely fond of each other, I surely assumed - "

"Yeah, well, I suggest you re-assume."

"No need to get snarky," Elsa shot back, and even Kristoff seemed to catch how little characteristic that sentence sounded.

They both stopped talking, and it was quiet for a couple of minutes.

Elsa fiddled with her book, and Kristoff put his mittens on and off. But after a while, he cleared his throat and broke the silence.

"It's not that I don't - uh, _love _her. I do!" He stopped.

"I know you do," Elsa replied. "You can take your time. I don't think Anna cares whether you two are married or not. She loves you, too."

Kristoff scowled, as if he'd hoped she would keep the argument going. "I - I can't afford all that right now. I mean - marriage, kids? Nah. Not quite ready for it. Or _cut out _for it."

"But - you have one of the most important jobs in Arendelle," Elsa said.

"Yeah, so?"

She sighed. "You earn more than most men around here. You can certainly afford a simple wedding, and providing for your family shouldn't be a difficulty, either."

"You're royals!" Kristoff argued. "Compared to you, I'm just a - a simple ice harvester."

"The land would not have drinking water or washing water without you, Kristoff. And yes, Anna and I are royals. Which means: we can pay for the wedding, and we can help you out if there is anything your family may need."

"That's exactly it," he replied, as if he was speaking to a child who'd just understood something he'd tried to explain for half an hour. "I don't want your help. I want to earn my own money, and then pay for _everything _myself."

_Men._

"I understand," Elsa said reluctantly, chewing on the inside of her bottom lip.

"Good." He didn't sound annoyed anymore, and was even smiling a little. Not in triumph, but in relief. Elsa found herself looking at his eyes for no particular reason, and saw that they posessed remarkable, golden flecks in addition to the warm, brown color, making them appear to have an inner flame. A pure, fearless passion.

She'd never noticed that about him before.

"Are you okay?" Kristoff wondered.

"Yes," Elsa said. "If you're hungry, I can ask Bergliot to bring you some food - "

"I already uh - I already ate."

Elsa crossed her arms gently across her chest and smiled a little. "Now, did you?"

Kristoff arched a thick eyebrow. "It's not like I would lie about not eating," he said, slightly jokingly, but still in a dull voice. "And I know _you _didn't."

"Bergliot?" Elsa raised her hand, as if she was sitting in a class, and waved her maid over. "Please bring Herr Bjorgman something to eat, and also tell Geir to inform my sister that her suitor awaits. Thank you."

Kristoff let out a laugh, and leaned back in his chair, pressing his hands on the back of his head. Elsa wouldn't be surprised if he kicked off his shoes and put his feet on the table. "Never been called Herr before. I almost feel - well, like royalty now."

"People of royalty are usually referred to as 'king', 'queen', 'prince' or 'princess'," Elsa corrected him, a tiny smile playing on her lips.

Kristoff made a sound and shrugged, making the table quiver. "Well, a _highly important person_, then," he said theatrically.

"You _are," _Elsa informed him. "You're the 'Official Arendelle Ice Master and Deliverer', or have you forgotten?"

He almost looked flattered for a moment, but sniffed. "Don't make me laugh. It's not like you couldn't use your ice magic-power-thing if I happened to... be killed by a nymph, right?"

Elsa narrowed her eyes. "What? Nymph?"

They both flinched when Bergliot, a young, slender woman with her brown hair in a tight bun on the top of her head, entered the room and expertly put three big plates of bread in front of Kristoff. "Here you go, min Herre."

"Thank you." He patted her upper arm and flirtatiously cupped her chin with a mischievous smile, and Bergliot turned and looked at Elsa, entertainingly bewildered.

Elsa found herself snickering. "Don't worry. His hands are clean. Aren't they, Herr Bjorgman?"

"I've lived in the woods for the past twenty-one years. I recently found out what soap is," he grumbled. "Still don't find it necessary, though."

Bergliot seemed less than pleased, and left the room in a hurry.

"You scared her," Elsa said accusingly, but smiling.

"I thanked her."

"You are not supposed to touch the staff, Kristoff," laughed Elsa. "Eat now."

"Aren't you having some?" he wondered, raising a pale eyebrow while shoving the bread down his throat.

"Not today. I'll have something big for lunch," she answered. "Where are you and Anna off to today?" she wasn't able to cover up the obvious jealousy in her voice, and avoided Kristoff's gaze. She had an inevitable desire to leave this castle. If only for a day. She needed it, simply.

"Today she's coming to harvest ice with me," Kristoff said. "It's - uh, completely safe, of course."

"Yeah," Elsa muttered. "Well - "

The door was opened.

Anna was ready to go, wearing her outdoor clothing, and as eager as ever. "I can't _wait_!" Elsa heard her squeal, as Kristoff and her stormed out. She felt a piercing sting of resent. Why was she so envious of her sister?


End file.
